7 years later...

"Ruby, why are you still here? It's 2:30, shouldn't you be picking up kiddo?" Hitch asks, upon seeing Ruby still in Spectrum, worryingly close to when school lets out. "You should probably be hurrying along, especially since she starts to panic if you're not there."

"Hitch, it's fine. She's in the lab with SJ right now. She decided that she didn't need to go today, so she played hooky." Ruby replies lazily.

"And you just decided to let her skip?!" Hitch exclaims, seconds away from starting his you-have-a-child-now-grow-up-and-act-like-it lecture that Ruby has heard a thousand times, and is not too fond of.

"She presented very persuasive evidence on why she should skip today." Ruby replies, looking slightly uneasy.

"Which was?"

They were practicing for a Christmas play all day long. Bryn has already decided that no one will catch her dead in any pageant, show, or musical if any type."

At this, Hitch does a little huff of amusement, of which you would have to know LB, Ruby, and the said child to understand. "So the kid and Mrs. Drisco aren't seeing eye-to-eye?" He asks.

"That woman is still as unpleasant as what she was when I was a kid. Add that to Bryan's dislike for people with authority and use it to push people around, her thinking that authority and respect should be awarded people because of their usefulness and earning respect, not age, and her dislike for pointless orders, which Mrs. Drisco just loves giving, you're bound to have a problem. Besides, acting is not a necessity in most jobs. As Bryn put it 'acting is in no way, shape, form, or fashion going to help me be a zoologist and live in Madagascar. I don't see why I have to learn it, or singing for that matter. The only people skills I need to know is how to speak eloquently, which anyone with an ounce of common sense can do. Therefore, I don't have to be there, and any orders she gave about me being there are stupid.'"

The conversation would have gone on, most likely turning into a small argument, if the intercom had not cracked on and announced "Agents Crew Clancy, Crew Ruby, Blacker, and Hitch report immediately to Spectrum 8. Agent in charge, office situated on black and white level. HQ."

This caused Ruby and Hitch to hurry off to LB's office, both wondering 'what in the world was wrong that the four out of the six best living agents would be called into LB's office.'

Once everyone gathered into LB's office 6 minutes later, Blacker was over in the lab with SJ and Bryn, the new briefing started.

"Both of the Crews will be going in a long undercover operation in Chesapeake Bay. They will be both gathering information, and if the opportunity arises, taking down what started out as a harmless local gang, but has now escalated to an international smuggling ring of everything imaginable. They also hire themselves out to kill different people for the right price. It is believed to be started by our old long-time friends. Blacker and Hitch will act as your contacts to us, and as part of your cover."

At recovering this information from LB, everyone grimaces, knowing exactly who started it, and why this is such a big deal that all of them were called in. Though, only one person asks the question that everyone was thinking, and no surprise to anyone, it was Hitch.

"Why Ruby and Clancy? They have a seven-year-old child that they need to take care of. A child that they don't want involved in this type of stuff, meaning nothing in which they should be gone for over a week. This sounds like they'll be long for much longer, and if we're all involved in it, who's going to watch the child? We wouldn't want what happened to temporary agent Digby to happen to her do we?"

"Of course not agent Hitch. I've been thinking about the arrangements that would be needed, and since this is so top-secret in which not a single word leaves this room, the only choice is for the child to stay with me. I'll collect her later tonight. Any other objections to the plan?"

With that, everyone but Ruby takes their leave with their case files, knowing that they were dismissed as soon as LB uttered the last word of her answer to Hitch.

"Crew?" LB questions, immediately asking Ruby what is on her mind the second the door closes.

"You don't need to stop by my house. Bryn is in the lab with SJ, with a bag. Not only did I have a nagging idea saying that I'd be leaving soon, I also saw the case on your desk yesterday."

"I thought because of her hips and all the surgeries you and Clancy decided that Bryn would stay out of all this."

"We did, and still stand by that decision. But, we both know Bryn. She would be an exceptional agent, better than all of us, but it will be entirely her choice, and she will know the danger in it, and be an adult before she starts anything. Did you know that a year ago she figured out what we really do? She eavesdropped on some conversations, and decided to go snooping. We didn't catch her, nor would we have known if she didn't confront us." Ruby answers promptly, with a hint of pride in her voice when she talks about how Bryn figured out what her parents did.

"So, what changed your mind to only wanting to keep her out of all this until she's older?" LB questions.

"The latest hip check-up was outstanding. The doctor said that it was the best surgery she had ever seen, and that if it stays how it is, Bryn will break the rule 50 before 50, meaning she would have a 50% chance of getting juvenile arthritis before she was 50. She also said that it was still a miracle that Bryn was doing as good as what she is, and that she should still be cautious when doing sports. Though she wanted her breath on that, Bryn is the most cautious child I have ever met, and if it hurts her hip, she doesn't care who she has to go against or what trouble she'll get into, you can't get her to do that activity."

"So what activities are too stimulating?" LB asks with genuine coursity. The minute that she heard her god-child has hip-dysplasia and would have to have many surgeries and have limited movement practically all of her toddlerhood because of casts and braces, she ordered many books on the subject and got as educated as she could.

This led to LB knowing just how lucky they all were that Bryn was almost completely normal. Almost, is the keyword in that sentence. Bryn does have some limits that she learned the hard way not to push.

It also led to LB knowing that every case was different depending on the person, and that there can't really be a complete expectation for the child. Bryn is an abnormally active child, which definitely helps, though it could lead to harm too.

"Running bleachers is definitely out. So are box-jumps, going completely down on jump-lunges, and running for over a half-mile if she doesn't throughly stretch out. These all cause pain and should be avoided, and this information has been learned through several 'experiments.' Essentially, if it involves her lifting if bending her left side too low or high, or running too long on it with cold muscles, she'll be icing and will be walking with a limp for a couple of hours at the least, a day or two at the most." Ruby states happily, though with a hint of sorrow in her voice.

"I'll keep this in mind. Does she have the ice pack just in case?"

"You should try getting it out of her sight. She keeps it with her at all times, just in case. LB, I'm worried about her being so active though. Just yesterday Bryn and her friend were playing street ball, she got fouled, and fell hard on her left hip. Her friends immediately checked and made sure that she was okay and could walk, but for that second when she wasn't trying to get to her feet, the thought that her hip popped out of place flashed through my mind. What would I need to do if this happens? What if I don't notice it and she doesn't say anything because she doesn't want to seem weak to us? What if I'm not a good enough mother?" Ruby questions quickly, almost as if the words start to come out of her mouth she can't stop them.

"Stop right there. You would use your head if that happened, and you just said that she was a cautious child and that the check-up cane back perfectly. If this is true, then that should never happen. If it's not going to happen, then why are you worrying about it? Now go tell your child that you'll be away from her for a while and that she'll be staying with me." LB replies back softly and sternly, not bothering to mention that she got concerned about this idea every time she watched one of Bryan's numerous sport games and meets.

Ruby takes in a shaky breath, but then nods her head and puts on a pained smile, going to be joined with her child for a few seconds.

Upon seeing her mom enter the lab, Bryn smiles and moves away from SJ to see her mother. She has a single purpose in her mind, and it was to get a very important question answered. It was something that she couldn't ask SJ about, since it involved her.

"Mom, I have a question." Lb started, looking for her mother's nod of recognition before asking it.

"Why does Aunty SJ start giggling like an idiot at everything Uncle Blacker says, and vice-versa?"

There was a reaction from everyone in the room that heard that question. SJ's eyes immediately widened, and started sputtering. Ruby had to tense up every muscle in her body and take in deep, shaky breaths to keep herself from laughing. Upon seeing both of the adult's reactions, Bryn suddenly got a pained look on her face, realizing that she probably just said one of those things that shouldn't be said out loud.

"Never mind. Mom, what are you even doing here, I thought you wouldn't be back until at least 30 more minutes." Bryn says, smoothly changing the subject, which both adults decide to drop since they don't feel like explaining how someone falls in love, or what all cray things they do while in love to a seven-year-old who questions everything, and doesn't believe in true love, or most types of love for that matter.

"Love, I'm afraid your dad and I will have to be gone for a little while. You'll be staying with LB though." Ruby says, trying her best to sound happy and excited, trying to push aside the dread feeling that she has. The feeling that something would go very wrong.

If only she has listened to that feeling, then everything might not have happened.